Near Lancaster in DeKalb County, Tennessee — The American South (East South Central)

Center Hill Dam
⎯⎯⎯
Center Hill Powerhouse

Photographed by Duane and Tracy Marsteller, October 9, 2020

1. Center Hill Dam / Center Hill Powerhouse Marker

Inscription. Center Hill Dam Designed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and built by private contractors, Center Hill Dam, 240 feet high and 2,160 feet long, impounds 64 miles of the Caney Fork River. Congress authorized the dam in 1938 to reduce flood damage in the Cumberland, Ohio, and Mississippi River valleys. Construction began in 1942, but was suspended in 1943 due to World War II. Work resumed in 1946, the same year that Congress authorized recreational use of the reservoir. Center Hill Dam was completed in 1951.

Center Hill Powerhouse Beginning in 1951 three hydropower turbine-generator units generated electricity. Water surges 160 feet from an intake on the reservoir to the units in the powerhouse. the generated power is transferred to the switchyard to distribute the electricity for public use. Collectively, the units have a capacity of 135,000 kilowatts, sufficient to provide electricity to a city of 125,000 people. The powerhouse's Art Deco-Art Moderne architecture is typical of the period 1942-1952, when the powerhouse was under construction.

Erected by Tennessee Historical Commission. (Marker Number 2D 54.)

Topics and series.

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This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Architecture • Charity & Public Work • Waterways & Vessels. In addition, it is included in the Art Deco, and the Tennessee Historical Commission series lists. A significant historical year for this entry is 1938.

Location. 36° 5.93′ N, 85° 49.499′ W. Marker is near Lancaster, Tennessee, in DeKalb County. It is on Lancaster Road (State Highway 96/141), on the right when traveling west. Marker is located at overlook at dam's east end. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 270 Lancaster Road, Lancaster TN 38569, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in Middle Tennessee

and in the Highland Rim.

It is also in the American South

and specifically in the Upper South.

Globally, it is in North America,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once the territory of the Mississippian Culture,

one of the Confederate States of America,

and the Antebellum South.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 6 miles of this marker, measured as the

Photographed by Duane and Tracy Marsteller, October 9, 2020

2. Center Hill Dam / Center Hill Powerhouse Marker

crow flies: Edgar Evins State Park (approx. one mile away); Dunham Cemetery Trail (approx. 1.6 miles away); Tennessee Veterans (approx. 3 miles away); U.S. Senator Albert Gore, Sr. (approx. 3 miles away); Tennessee Civil War Trails (approx. 3 miles away); Jim Denny (approx. 3.8 miles away); Buffalo Valley School (approx. 3.8 miles away); Tennessee Central Crash Kills 10 (approx. 6 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Lancaster.

Another marker is no longer nearby. Civil War in Tennessee (was approx. 3 miles away but has been permanently removed).

Photographed by Duane and Tracy Marsteller, October 9, 2020

3. Center Hill Dam / Center Hill Powerhouse Marker

Photographed by Duane and Tracy Marsteller, October 9, 2020

4. Center Hill Dam / Center Hill Powerhouse Marker

View of the dam and powerhouse from overlook.

Credits. This page was last revised on October 12, 2020. It was originally submitted on October 12, 2020, by Duane and Tracy Marsteller of Murfreesboro, Tennessee. This page has been viewed 897 times since then and 49 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4. submitted on October 12, 2020, by Duane and Tracy Marsteller of Murfreesboro, Tennessee. • Devry Becker Jones was the editor who published this page.

Center Hill Dam⎯⎯⎯Center Hill Powerhouse

Center Hill Dam
⎯⎯⎯
Center Hill Powerhouse